DOT Safety Education News

Last year was a banner year for DOT, as we continued making City streets safer for everyone:

• DOT had a record year for helmet fittings. In total, we fitted and distributed 15,181 free bike helmets to participants city-wide.
• The Safety Education team inspected close to 1,000 car seats to ensure that they were installed correctly and distributed approximately 300 free car safety seats to low income families.
• To raise awareness of the NYC speed limit (30 mph unless otherwise posted) and highlight the danger of excessive speed, DOT created a public service campaign that ran on television, radio and billboards. The ads drove home (and continue to drive) the message that the speed limit is 30 mph for a reason.
• Following the model of New York’s popular Bike to Work Day, Brooklyn’s William Alexander School MS 51 was the first school in the five boroughs to host a Bike to School Day in May. Middle school students rode their bikes to and from school, capping off a week of bike programming developed in conjunction with Bike New York and DOT.
• DOT’s You the Man anti-drunk-driving campaign launched a free iPhone app that uses GPS to help users find the closest subway stops and livery car services. At the end of the year, the campaign distributed 2,000 pre-paid debit cards, for use in cabs, car services and MTA ticketing machines, to help holiday revelers get home safely.  
• Summer Streets and Weekend Walks returned to NYC, providing valuable public space to New Yorkers to walk, play, bike and even swim car-free.

Keeping NYC streets safe is a team effort. Want to know how you and your family can do your part? Here are some safety resolutions for the New Year:

Walking and Biking

As a pedestrian, always use crosswalks to get across the street safely.
Drivers are expecting to see pedestrians at the corner by the curb walking in crosswalks. Make yourself visible by crossing where drivers will be looking for you.

Always wear helmets when on two wheels.
Make sure helmets fit properly! Children 13 years or younger are required to wear a helmet by law.

On a bicycle, follow the same rules of the road as drivers in other vehicles do.
Always ride in the direction of traffic and yield to pedestrians. Only children age 12 or younger may ride on the sidewalk.

Driving

Don’t drive while distracted.
According to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), nearly 80% of all crashes involved driver inattention during the last three seconds before the incident.

Always follow the speed limit: 30 mph unless otherwise posted.
If a pedestrian is hit by a car traveling 40 mph, there’s a 70% chance he or she will be killed. Hit at 30 mph, there’s an 80% chance the pedestrian will live.  

Make sure passengers in your vehicle buckle up on every ride. Children should sit in the back seat of the vehicle until they are at least 13 years old.
Make sure that your children are using an appropriate child restraint system.

Drive safely in school safety zones: Look for SCHOOL X-ING markings on the road, street signs and ladder-striped school crosswalks.  
Make each trip a safe one! Together, we can keep our children safe as they travel to and from school. Learn more about DOT’s Safe Routes to School program.

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